Coronavirus: Mental Health

(asked on 16th December 2022) - View Source

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to page 92 of the Women’s Health Strategy, following the analysis of the written evidence submissions, what steps his Department has taken to encourage research on the impact of the covid-19 pandemic on women’s mental health.


Answered by
Maria Caulfield Portrait
Maria Caulfield
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
This question was answered on 21st December 2022

The Department funds research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). Subject to receiving high-quality applications, the NIHR expects to commission a policy research unit dedicated to mental health. The unit will undertake research to inform policy in this area, with the COVID-19 pandemic and related social impacts highlighted as potential topics. Applications are currently being reviewed, with the unit expected to operate from January 2024.

While the NIHR has funded research on COVID-19 and mental health, no specific research has been commissioned on the impact on women’s mental health. The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health. Applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards made based on the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money and scientific quality. It is not usual practice for the NIHR to ring-fence a proportion of its budget for research into particular topics or conditions.

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